Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, citing people familiar with the matter, reported on October 14 that Apple plans to launch Apple Intelligence in mainland China in December through an iOS 27.3 update, covering iPhone, iPad and Mac. Apple has not made a public statement, and the launch timing remains subject to an official announcement.
According to the report, the first batch of features includes Genmoji, notification summaries and Writing Tools. The new features that shipped this year with iOS 27 in the US and other regions are not part of it, and the new Siri is not on the first-batch list either. Gurman also said Apple executives are not optimistic about Siri AI launching in China any time soon.
An approval more than two years in the making
Apple Intelligence debuted overseas in 2024, but users in mainland China have been unable to use it. Generative AI services there must clear domestic regulatory filing, and Apple also needed a local model partner.
In mid-July this year, Apple's generative AI service appeared on an approval list published by the Cyberspace Administration of China. Alibaba then confirmed that Qwen (Tongyi Qianwen) will be integrated into the China edition of Apple Intelligence across iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS, and Baidu also confirmed it is working with Apple on AI features for iPhones in China. The announcement did not give a launch date.
Earlier, in late March, Apple Intelligence briefly appeared on some China-market iPhones before being pulled. Gurman said on social media at the time that it had gone live by mistake: the features were long since ready and were only waiting for regulatory approval.
Public reports also show that after the China-market foldable iPhone Duo (model A3721) had its certification renewed on September 29, it gained three new large-model filing numbers: Apple Intelligence, Tongyi Wanxiang and Qwen. Apple has not responded on whether these numbers are directly related to the December plan.
Alibaba and Baidu each take a piece
Bloomberg reports that, to win approval, Apple developed content safeguards together with Alibaba, while search and Siri-related features are being done with Baidu. Some features will be restricted to meet regulatory requirements. The report does not say which features will be limited or to what extent.
We previously reported that code in iOS 27 betas already contained Writing Tools restrictions aimed at mainland China. At the time, the code only showed that Apple was preparing a China-specific configuration; it revealed neither the partners nor the timeline. Bloomberg's December date and iOS 27.3 are the first concrete milestones.
What changes for users in China
Start with the hardware bar. Apple Intelligence has device requirements: iPhone models must be iPhone 15 Pro or later, and Macs and iPads need an M-series chip. Among iPhones already in use in China, a large number of iPhone 14 and earlier models will not be able to use it even after updating to iOS 27.3.
Then the features themselves. Genmoji, notification summaries and Writing Tools have been available overseas for two years and amount to handy little utilities built into the system. Compared with the system-level AI assistants made by domestic phone makers, and the agents inside apps such as Doubao and Qwen, their scope is much narrower. For most China-market users, the December update will feel more like catching up.
The biggest gap is Siri. Per Gurman's report, there is still no timetable for the new Siri in China, while domestic Android makers have already built "let the assistant operate apps for you" into their systems. There is no sign of when Apple will fill that gap.
One more uncertainty remains. Overseas, some Apple Intelligence requests run on Apple's Private Cloud Compute. For the China version, with Alibaba and Baidu models doing the work, public information does not say where data will be processed or how much users will be told. The privacy notice page shown when the December update rolls out will be the first document that can be checked.
Sources: Bloomberg report by Mark Gurman, CocoLoop, TechCrunch, TechNode; the Cyberspace Administration of China approval list and public confirmations from Alibaba and Baidu were used to check the partner details, and Apple's website to check Apple Intelligence supported devices.